Idling mechanism for welding apparatus



March 1946- E. A. HOBART 2,396,176v

IDLING MECHANISM FOR WELDING APPARATUS Original Filed Nov. 20, 1945 2 Sheets-Sheet l 3 E INAVEfiITOR DWRRD OBART m j J 2/ BY 2.5 2 7 S SZWQ KOSW ATTORNEY Miami: 5, 19546.

E. A.. HOBART IDLING MECHANISM FOR JVELDING APPARATUS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2' Original Filed Nbvv 20, 1945 I \IIRm Saw ATTORNEY 5 Patented Mar. 5, 1946 IDLING MECHANISM FOR,WELDING APPARATUS Edward A. Hobart, TroyQO hio, assignor to The Hobart Bros. Company, Troy; ()hio 'a corpora- Continuation of application Serial No. 511,011, November 20, 1943. This application .S'eptem- UNITED STATES OF her 7, 1944, Serial No. 552,965

6 Claims. (Cl. 290-40) The present invention relate to welding apparatus and more particularly to devices for regulating or controlling the speed of the prime mover in accordance with the demand on the H welding generator.

It is desirable to effect a reduction in speed of .the gasoline engine or other primary source of mechanical power when the load on the welding generator is temporarily stopped so as to reduce wear. and'tear on the engine during such periods of inaction and also to cut down the fuel consumption as much as possible. A number of difnculties are encountered in utilizing a systemof I this character, for example, the automatic speed reducing; device must selectively operate only after a predetermined length of time,usually;12 to 15 seconds after the welding arc has stopped,

-speed inorderto obtain fiat speed regulation at i the generator while-under weldingload without any disturbance from the idling device.

The primary, object of the invention is to provide an idlingdevice or apparatus of an inexpen- 1 sive but highly efficient type-which operates to reduce the speed of the prime mover in any pre- ;determinedamount :after a definitetime has elapsed fromthetime that the-welding current has been cutoff.

Another object is to provide an idling device of the type referred to which can operateeither -incombination with or separately from the governor speed control apparatus, the arrangement being such that during the welding operation the speed of the'engine is under theexclusive control of the governor=but when the welding operation is i stopped, the speed of the engine is under theex- -clusive-control of the'improved idling device.

Still another-object is to provide apparatus by fwhich-the-speed'of the prime mover is reduced automatically in any, desired amount but only after-a predetermined time delay from the moment thatvnorweldmg current is being taken from t enerator. l t V The above objects are carried out in brief by providin'gapowerful magnetic actuator which is mechanically connected tothe throttle 'valve of the engine and coupling the same throttle tothe usual speedvgovernor through an extensible link which so"cooperates with the actuator that there is no interference between the latter and the link during either the normal speed regulation by the governor or'any interference with the operation of the idling device when the engine speed is beof time.

mg cut down during the non-welding intervals I In order to prevent the operation of the idling device during the short time that the operator is changing electrodes but is contemplating immediate further use of the welder, a time delay switch of an improved character is electrically connected bothto the operating coil of the actuator and alsoto the field circuitof the generator so as to introduce the required'time factor.

Otherobjects and features will be apparent when the following description is perused in connection. with the accompanying drawings in vvwhich:

Figure 1 represents a schematic layout of the improved-apparatus and inter-connected me- 7 chanicahandelectrical system by which the delayed idling. function referred to above maybe obtained. This figure indicates the positions of the various element during the welding operation and in-which the engine is under the control exclusively of the usual speed governor.

Figure 2 is a layout similar to Figure 1 but i showing the delayed operation of the idling device after welding has stopped.

Figure 3- illustrates by way of a sectional view with a few parts in elevation an improved mechan ical linkage between the speed governor of the engine and the throttle, also a connection between the idling device and the mechanical linkage, the arrangement being such that the throttle is under'the independent control during exclusive periods of time of the speed governor 40 and'the idling device.

Figure 4fis a vertical sectional view of a timing switch for introducing a, time delay of adjustable character between the time that electrical energy is removed from the actuatingcoil and the tim'e'that the switch actually performs its switching function. Figure 4shows a. switch in open position, while Figure 5 shows a switch in closed or short-circuiting position.

- Figure 6 is a graphical diagram indicating the welding and idling periods of the Welding apparatus'and showing themanner in which the speed of the engine or other prime mover is considerably reduced during the idling period.

Refer-ring more-particularly to Figures 1 and 2, numeral i designatesa prime mover'such as typified by a swingable lever 41. connected to the bell crank lever by an improved a gas engine provided with an intake manifold 2 on which is mounted a carburetor 3 including a butterfly valve 4. The main shaft 5 of the engine is mechanically coupled, as indicated by the dot-dash line 5 to an exciter generator 7 and also to the armature of a main welding generator 8. The shunt field 9 of the generator and the field Ill of the welding generator 5 are connected through a variable resistor II to the armature of the exciter generator I. Consequently, when the gas engine I operates, the exciter generator 7 provides a field current for the welding generator 8 and the current from the main generator may be employed for welding purposes as indicated at l2.

In addition to being provided with the field ill, the welding generator or armature 8 is wound with a series field I3 of adjustable character and is also provided with inter-poles or a commutating field I5. Connections I5 are taken from one side of each of the series and commutating field to a solenoid I6 which forms part of an improved time delay switch generally indicated at H. One of the conductors I5 is also connected to the upper 01' movable welding electrode while the other conductor I5 is connected to one side of the armature 3. The other side of the generator armature is connected through a conductor I8 to the grounded workpiece on which the welding operation is being performed.

A conductor I9 is taken from a terminal on the upper end of the switch I! and the conductor also includes a hand operated switch 2| and a battery 22 which connects to ground 23. A wire 24 is connected between the conductor I9 and a solenoid 25 of an electromagnetic actuator generally indicated at 25. The other side of the sole noid is connected through a wire 21 to a terminal 28 positioned at the upper end of the switch ll, but insulated from the terminal 25 as will be described hereinafter. A fixed resistor 29 is connected between the wire 27 and ground.

Within the solenoid 25 there is a reciprooable plunger 30 which supports a plunger rod 3| passing loosely through a guide plate 32. is contained within the solenoid and its purpose is to guide the sliding movements of the rod when the electromagnet 25 is alternately energized and de-energized. The rod 3i terminates in a knob 33 which may rest on a plate 35 for limiting the downward movement of the rod. There is an upstanding support 35 secured to the plate 35 and a lever 36 is pivotally mounted as indicated at 31 on the support. An arm 38 is swivelly secured to the lever 35, the arm being provided with a threaded adjustment rod 39 to which a chain 45 is attached. The upper end of the chain is secured to the arm of a bell crank lever H pivotally mounted on the carburetor 3. The arrangement is such that when the plunger 35 is caused to move upwardly within the solenoid 25 the lever 35 is rotated clockwise and the chain 40 is rendered taut to rotate the bell crank lever 4| clockwise (Figure 2). The conditions under which the plunger 30 is drawn into the solenoid 25 will be explained in connection with the operation of the time delay switch I 'I.

An auxiliary shaft 42 is also taken from the engine I, the shaft terminating in a pulley 43 which receives a belt 44. The latter drives a pulley 45 connected to any suitable form of speed governor 45 the actuated element of which is The latter is The latter form of slip rod joint illustrated in detail in Figure 3.

The governor lever 3'! is connected through a threaded rod 58 to a swivel bearing 49 of any well known and suitable type contained within a metal bearing 55. The swivel bearing may comprise a spherical member positioned between arcuate recesses formed at the ends of a pair of oppositely disposed plugs 5| contained within the tubular member 55 and held in position by a cotter pin 52. The member 50 terminates in a solid portion indicated at 53 which has a threaded wall to receive a threaded rod 54 which passes through an adjusting nut 55. The rod 54 is slidably received by a plug 56 which is secured to the left hand end of a metal cylinder 51. The latter is threaded over the end of a heavy metal tube 58 and this tube is provided with a reduced diameter portion 59 having a threaded bore for receiving a rod 68. An adjusting nut 6| surrounds the rod 59 and abuts the right hand end of the tube 59.

A heavy washer or plug 52 is secured to the rod 54 and is contained within the cylinder 51 immediately to the right of the plug 56. There is a compression spring 53 positioned between the heavy washer 62 and the left hand interior end of the tubing 58.

The rod 60 is threaded through'an adjusting nut 54 into the solid end of a hollow metal member which receives a swivel bearing 66 similar to the structure provided at the opposite end of the slip rod joint. The upper end of the bell crank lever 4i (Figure 1) is connected through a stud 5'! to the swivel bearing 66,

The operation of the speed control apparatus will be apparent from the foregoing description. As the engine tends to speed up due to a slightly less welding load on the generator the governor 46 rotates proportionately faster to cause the actuating lever i? to rotate slightly clockwise. Thus, a pull is exerted on the rod 54 to the left as seen in Figure 3 which causes the plug 62 to push against plug 55 and exerts a pull to the left on the swivel bearing 66. This in turn causes rotation of the bell crank lever 4| tending to close the throttle 4. Thus, the speed of the engine is maintained relatively constant regardless of slight variations in the welding current drawn from the generator 8 and a fiat speed characteristic is imparted to the generator. It is apparent that as the generator current is increased during the welding operation the load on the engine I becomes greater, tending to reduce its speed below normal and the governor 46 would operate to rotate the throttle valve 4 counterclockwise (Figure 1) and thereby increase the supply of fuel to the engine.

Now, supposing for any reason that no load current had been drawn from the welding generator 8 for an appreciable length of time so that it was desired to reduce the speed of the engine to an idling speed in order to save wear and tear on the various reciprocating parts of the engine and also to reduce the amount of fuel drawn. The electromagnet 25 is caused to be energized in a manner as will be explained hereinafter so that the plunger 30 is drawn strongly upward as indicated in Figure 2. The

lever 36 is caused to rotate clockwise about its axis 51 so that the chain 30 is rendered taut and the bell crank lever d! is caused to rotate clockwiseto close the throttle valve 4.

It will be noted that this rotation of the lever M will have no effect on the governor lever 41 because the slip rod joint is so designed as to .:.which' remains fixed in space. -.within the tubular member :58 readily receives the righthand end of the rod 54. The amount war-shortening of the slip rod joint that can be '-accommodated in this manner may be varied by predetermining the -.-screw 50 which. threads into the tubular portion .:-59.: Inasmuch-as there is no change in position 'of-thespeed governor lever 41 when the chain 40 rotates-thethrottle valve 4 to a relatively aclosed position the governor is ready to take over thespeed control of the engine when the-chain $.40 isloosened upon de-energizationof the electromagnet 25 as indicated in Figure l.

: permit a reductionuof its length-and all of the ..=thrust exerted: downwardly on the joint by the movement 'Of the lever Al is accommodated by the spring. This can be readily observed in Fig- ...ure 3- because'any movement to the left of the swivel member GBmerely causes the sleeve 51 and pits plug .55. to slide to the left over the rod 54,

ithus compressingspring 63 against the plug 62 The opening 68 length of that portion of the 1 :The electromagnet 25 is normally de-energized 1 during the welding operation and becomes Venercgized only when the welding has ceased for an ,indefinite period of time but after a predetermined time delay. It is apparent that it would not be practical to reduce the speed of the engine to-an idlingspeed during short intervals of time as when the. operator has merely. stopped welding solely for the purpose of changing or renewing .the welding electrode and it was his intention ;to immediately resume the welding operation. However, there are numerous periods of time, as

for example, when the location of the weld is I .being changed or when work is being placed in .i positionior welding that the welding generator will run absolutely at no load and the engine l willbe performing no useful work. Under these circumstances, it is highly desirable to cut down the speed of the engine to the lowest speed consistent with'permitting the engine to turn over, :thereby reducing Wear and tear. on the engine,

also the rate and amount of fuel used up.

i. In accordance with another feature of the in- Ventin,there is employed an improved form of time delay switch which cooperates with the. electromagnetic actuator 26 in such a manner as to introduce the time delay factor referred to above. This switch is shown in Figures 4 and 5 which will now be described. Reference character 69 represents a casing, preferably of cylindrical configuration and made of any suitable insulating There is an insulatoricap shoulceiving the flange portion of a longmetal tube 15. This metal tube is provided at its lower end with a metal tip or electrode 11 positioned concentrically with respect to the casing. A conuductor 18 is connected to the upper end of the -meta1.tube 16. There is a long metal cylinder 19 with non-magnetic properties which fits snugly 'within the interior of the casing 69 and effectively secured thereto by reason of a conically shaped The ceramic washer 13 The latter fits about the hub heavy compression insulator. 83 two vor..more sealing gaskets or of the metal cylinder '86.

- plunger 88. only-way the mercury can escape is .opening 81.

. mediately associated with .the plunger 30 is drawn upwardly 75.

pletely sealed.

A metal-cylindertfi open-at the top, but closed ;at the bottomexceptfor a relativelysmall opening :8'Lis loosely. received by'the interionof the metal cylinder 19,. so as to permit the cylinder freelyto. move with respect to-the adjacent cylinder. snugly within the interior of the metalcylinder Therezis a .ceramic tubing 88- fitted 86 and both cylinders :861and "19 are concentrically arranged about themetal tip all. Themetal cylindercl'9 is. closed:at the bottom as indicated at:r89.land contains mercury '90 which extends through'the opening 81 into-the interior ofzlthe ceramic tube. 88. The solenoid 19 surrounds. the lowenend ofthecasing fiil and is spaced from the shoulder I2 by a .tube 9|v of .insulatingmaterial.; If, desired; the solenoid may be contained within a. metal .shell;.9| of; magnetic. material which may constitute a coreof the shelltype.

i Thus, when the coil: 16 is energized, the. cylindrical plunger is drawn downwardly: and displaces mercury which tends .to flow upwardly around the sides and overflow into the interior Under normal conditions, i. c. When. the coil. I5 is de-energizedithe plunger. 85 merelylfioatsaonor. in. the .mercury,

leaving only a. relativelysmall amount of. mercury within the plunger The rate at whichathe plunger fifi is pulled downwardlyis practically I instantaneous as the restriction to flow of mercury upward around the plunger is very small- .Under these circumstances, the level of the interiorbody of the mercuryrapidly rises-until it makes contact withthe electrode tip 11, thiscondition being shown in Figure 5.

e A closedcircuit. is therefore..established-..be-

tween the conductor 18 through the .metal tube 115, the metal tipx'l'l, themercury and the metalcylinder 19 to the .opposite conductor :85.

.It is apparent that the conductors 18 v and :85 are insulated from one another except through the circuit that has been traced; In vorderto prevent arcing efiects betweenthe uppersurface of the. mercuryHSO and the electrode tip 11, the

' interior of the. casing 69 may be filled withany suitable inert gas.

Now. when .the coil 16 is. de-energized, the tends to .rise in the mercury. The through the In time enough mercury will escape through the opening. 81 that the contact between the mercuryand the metal tip 11 is broken. Any practical amount of time. delay in opening the circuit .between conductors :18 and 85 can be effected at the switch I! by a proper determination of thesize of the opening 81 as this opening regulates the speed with which. mercury can move between the upper and lower portions of the switch. As much as l5 seconds or more delay may be obtained if desired.

Referring. now .to the electrical circuits imthe welding generator 8, the time delay switch I! and the electromagnetic actuator 25, and assuming that the hand switch 2| has been closed, it will be noted that when no circuit has been established through the switch 11. current flows from the battery 22 through the coil 25 and the resistor 29 to ground. This is a-condition as shown in Figure 2 in which to render the chain: 40etaut and; thus. to cause ,the engine. to

-caused to be drawn downwardly as explained hereinbefore and the mercury 90 is caused to overflow within the cylinder 86 and to make contact with the electrode tip 11. A circuit is therefore established directly between the conductors 11 and 85 of the switch.

Referring again to Figure 1, it will be noted that the contacts of the mercury switch I 1 put a short-circuit path about the solenoid 25 causing current to be diverted around it and through the current-limiting resistance 29 to ground. With no current through the solenoid, the plunger 30 falls, in turn releasing the butterfly valve 4 to be controlled by the mechanical governor 46. The spring 63 is extended and under such operation the collapsible assembly acts as a solid rod. The snap action of the spring 63 in opening the butterfly valve 4 is very desirable as it enables the gasoline engine to pick up the load immediately.

When the welding ceases the plunger 86 of the mercury relay tends to float because the solenoid 16 becomes de-energized. However, the flow of mercury out of the plunger is restricted by the small orifice 81. By varying the size of this orifice different lengths of time delays are available. After a period of time, possibly 12 to 15 seconds, enough mercury will have escaped through the orifice and the plunger will have risen to the extent that the contact is broken between the electrode 11 and the metal cylinder 66. When the short-circuit is removed from around the solenoid 25 current will again flow through the solenoid which in turn will cause the throttle valve 4 to close, thus cutting the engine to idling speed. It is apparent that if the governor 46 tries to open the butterfly valve under idling conditions of the engine, it will merely compress the spring 63 and will therefore leave the valve 40 in the closed throttle position caused by the pulling effect exertedat the solenoid 25.

It is apparent that the mercury switch shown in Figures 4 and 5 is of the slow break but fast make circuit type and this difference is obtained by reason of the fact that in order to break circuit from the electrode tip 11 to the metal cylinder 86 a relatively large quantit of mercury must flow through the opening 81.

The slow break circuit type of switch is particularly advantageous in the present invention because it permits a predetermined amount of time to elapse after the solenoid becomes deenergized as when the welding is momentarily stopped. The welding operation might have been temporarily discontinued in order to give the operator an opportunit of replenishing the welding electrode in which case it is not desirable to remove the short-circuit from the solenoid 26. It is therefore necessary to permit the solenoid to be energized by the removal of the short-circuit through the switch ll only when the cessation of the welding operation continues beyond 12 or 15 seconds which would indicate that the welding operation was being discontinued indefinitely.

Figure 6 shows graphically the manner in which the switch I! and the actuator 26 cooperate in order to provide an idling speed at the engine l when the welding operation isstopped beyond the period of time normally necessary to change electrodes. During the time period represented by the abscissa portion marked welding the engine isunder the exclusive control of the speed governor 46. The solenoid I6 is energized and the tubular electrode 86 is in its downmost position as indicated in Figure 5. Now'supposing that the arc is extinguished at the point a in the graph, the solenoid l6 becomes de-energized and the electrode 86 starts to rise and it will not have completed its upward movement until 12 to 15 seconds later, this'point being indicated b on the graph. At this point, the circuit between electrodes '11 and 86 will have been broken so that the short-circuit is removed from the solenoid 2'5 and the valve 4 will have been moved to its closed throttle position. Under these circumstances the speed of the engine will start to drop as indicated at c and will run at the idling speed up to a point indicated at d, at which time the arc is re-established. A short-circuit is then placed instantaneously about the solenoid through submersion of the electrode T1 in the mercury at which time the idling device 26 loses control and the latter is restored to the speed governor 46 in order to speed up the engine to the proper welding speed,

This application is a continuation of my application Ser. No. 511,011, filed November 20, 1943, entitled Idling device.

It will be understood that I desire to comprehend within my invention such modifications as come within the scope of the claims and the invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

1. In combination, an automotive engine and a welding generator coupled thereto, a welding circuit connected to the generator and means responsive entirely to the cessation of the welding are for reducing the speed of the engine, said means being also controllable by the initiation of the welding are for automaticall increasing the speed of the engine, said means including an actuator connected through a flexible link to the throttle of the engine and operated by a powerful solenoid, means for energizing said solenoid and a switch controllable by the cessation of the welding are for interrupting the energization of said solenoid, said switch being adapted to prevent energization of the solenoid when the welding arc is established, whereby the throttle of the engine is caused to either close or open depending on whether the welding arc has ceased or has been initiated.

2. In combination, an automotive engine and a welding generator coupled thereto, a welding circuit connected to the generator, 2. speed governor for controlling the speed of the engine when the load on the generator varies, and means responsive to the cessation of the welding are for causing the engine to run at a reduced idling speed, said means including the combination of a time delay mercury switch and an electromagnetic actuator which is mechanically connected to the throttle of the engine, said switch being responsive to the arcing conditions in the welding circuit and serving to control the supply of energy to said actuator, and a slip joint connection between the governor and the engine throttle, the arrangement being such that there is no interference between the operation of the electromagnetic actuator and the speed governor when each of these elements controls the engine under no electrical load conditions and under full load renditions respectively.

3. In combination, an automotive engine and a welding generator coupled thereto, a welding circuit connected to a generator, a governor responsive to the speed of the engine and a mechanical connection between the governor and the throttle of the engine, means responsive entirely to the cessation of welding current for causing the engine to run at a reduced idling speed, said last mentioned means including an electromagnetic actuator mechanically connected to the engine throttle, the mechanical connection between the throttle and the speed governor being of the slip rod type which permits the actuator to operate the throttle under no welding current load conditions without interference with the speed governor and permits the speed governor to control the speed of the engine under full load welding current conditions without interference with the electromagnetic actuator.

4. In combination, an automotive engine and a generator connected thereto, a speed governor on the engine, and a combined extensible and compressible mechanical link between the governor and the throttle of the engine for maintaining the speed of the engine substantially constant, notwithstanding variations in the load on the generator, and means for reducing the speed of the engine to an idling speed when no load is on the generator, said last-mentioned means and said speed governor operating independently of one another and exerting a speed control influence respectively under no load and full load generator conditions.

5. In combination, an automotive engine and a generator connected thereto, a speed governor on the engine, and a combined extensible and compressible mechanical link between the governor and the throttle of the engine for maintaining the speed of the engine substantially constant, notwithstanding variations in the load on the generator, and means for reducing the speed of the engine to an idling speed when no load is on the generator, said last-mentioned means and said speed governor operating independently of one another and exerting a speed control influence respectively under no load and full load generator conditions, said link comprising a rod swivelly connected to one of the governor lever and the throttle valve, said rod being received by a sleeve connected to the other of the governor lever and the throttle valve, a compression spring contained within the sleeve and surrounding said rod, said spring abutting at one end a shoulder formed on the sleeve and at the other end a shoulder formed on said rod whereby the sleeve and the rod can be compressed or extended to accommodate wide changes in the position of the throttle valve when the control has been taken over by the electromagnetic actuator for idling the engine.

6. In combination, an automotive engine and a speed governor therefor operating through a throttle valve, said governor serving to regulate the open throttle conditions of said valve, said engine being coupled to a generator and a load circuit therefor, and means operating independently of said governor for controlling the full open and completely closed conditions of said valve, said means comprising a combined electrical and magnetic structure connected to said throttle valve and responsive to incipient changes in the generator voltage for operating said valve from the open to the closed position and vice versa, mechanical connections between each of said structures, said governor and said valve, said connections including a bell crank lever secured to said throttle valve, a chain connected at one end to the bell crank lever and at the other end to said structure, and a slip rod member joint connected at one end to said bell crank lever and at the other end to said speed governor.

EDWARD A. HOBART. 

